Militants release 48 hostages held in Tikrit, say Iraq police

[Yahoo! News]

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Kirkuk (Iraq) (AFP) - Militants who have overrun a swathe of territory north of Baghdad in a lightning offensive released on Thursday 48 foreigners, including four Turks, held for several days, Iraqi police said. The construction workers, who were helping build a hospital in the now insurgent-held city of Tikrit, are from Turkey, Nepal, Bangladesh, Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan. "The workers... were kidnapped near the Hamreen mountains four days ago, and were handed over near a checkpoint between Tikrit and Kirkuk," said Major General Torhan Abdulrahman, the deputy police chief for Kirkuk province. "We brought them to Kirkuk, and they will return to their countries soon."

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